Guard rail safety system

ABSTRACT

A support post and safety fence assembly in which the post has a telescoping inner and outer tube and is supported on a threaded internal shaft coupled to a floor engaging end and ceiling engaging end preferably formed with claws that have a number of sharp penetrating points for firm engagement with a support surface. In one embodiment, a gravity lock assembly is provided for fixing the relative position of the inner and outer tubes. Dynamic adjustability of the support post is provided by internal compression springs.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/901,141 filed Jul. 29, 2004.

FIELD OF INVENTION

This invention relates to a safety post and fence assembly for use at aconstruction site.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Safety barriers or fences are used during the construction of high risebuildings to prevent construction workers from falling from the buildingand injuring themselves. They are also useful to prevent materials fromfalling from the building and for catching any flying debris being blownagainst the barriers and injuring people below. The safety barriers needto be set up and taken down with relative ease since they are temporaryand frequently moved from one location to another as the constructionprogresses. A safety barrier of this type typically comprises aplurality of posts supporting intervening fence panels.

Various types of support posts and fencing assemblies have been designedto try and address this need for a safety barrier. U.S. Pat. No.3,822,850 discloses a support for a construction fence. The supportcomprises a telescoping jack post which can be adjusted to fit snugglybetween a floor and ceiling. U.S. Pat. No. 3,589,682 discloses anothertype of telescopic fence column which has a manually operable jackingsystem and upper and lower pads for contacting the ceiling and floor ofa portion of the building. U.S. Pat. No. 3,946,992 discloses anothertype of construction fence post which comprises a C-shaped bracket whichis used to clamp the post to the edge of the floor section. U.S. Pat.No. 3,734,467 describes an upright for a wall partition which has acompression spring that allows for frictional engagement of the uprightbetween floors of a building under construction. U.S. Pat. No. 6,679,482discloses an improved construction perimeter guide stanchion. Anadjustment system allows one to tightly clamp the pair of jaws at thelower end of the stanchion to the edge of a floor slab in an elevatedunfinished building.

Although many attempts have been made to design improved safety barriersystems, there remains a need for a system that is easily erected anddismantled and which is self-adjusting, easily packaged safer andtamper-proof.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A support post and safety fence assembly in which the post has atelescoping inner and outer tube and is supported on a threaded internalshaft coupled to a floor engaging end and ceiling engaging endpreferably formed with claws that have a number of sharp penetratingpoints for firm engagement with a support surface. In one embodiment, agravity lock assembly is provided for fixing the relative position ofthe inner tube and outer tube. Dynamic adjustability of the support postis provided by internal compression springs which also allow the port tobe temporarily positioned in an upright position prior to securement.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of a safety post and fence assemblypositioned between two floors of a building under construction;

FIG. 2 a is an assembly view of a post made in accordance with theinvention;

FIG. 2 b is a cross-sectional view showing a top end of the post of FIG.2 a in a compressed configuration;

FIG. 2 c is a cross-sectional view of a center portion of the post ofFIG. 2 a with a lock positioned in engagement with an outer tube;

FIG. 2 d is a perspective view showing the top end of the post of FIG. 2a;

FIG. 2 e is a perspective view showing a bottom end of the post of FIG.2 a;

FIG. 3 a is a side elevation view of the post;

FIG. 3 b is a cross-sectional view drawn on line 3 b-3 b of FIG. 3 a;

FIG. 4 is a similar view to FIG. 3 a showing the post in positionbetween floors of the building under construction;

FIG. 5 is a similar view to FIG. 4 from another side;

FIG. 6 is a side elevation view showing the post of FIG. 4 being loweredto a lock position;

FIG. 7 is a detail cross-sectional view of circled area 7 in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a side elevation view showing the post of FIG. 6 beingreturned to a vertical orientation;

FIG. 9 is a detailed cross-sectional view of the top end of the post;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a portion of a fence panel andassociated fence lock;

FIG. 11 is a similar view to FIG. 10 showing the fence lock in anoperative locking orientation;

FIG. 12 is a similar view to FIG. 11 showing the fence lock inengagement to capture a fence post;

FIG. 13 is a top plan view of a pair of fence panels associated with apair of support posts; and

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment of asupport post made in accordance with the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF PREPERRED EMBODIMENTS WITH REFERENCE TO DRAWINGS

The invention provides a safety fence assembly generally indicated byreference numeral 20 and consisting of a plurality of upright supportposts 22 that extend between a supporting surface or floor 24 and aceiling 26. The posts are normally positioned adjacent to an opening andspaced apart by a distance commensurate with the length of an associatedfence panel or barrier 28. The fence panel 28 is normally positioned onthe interior side of the associated support post 22 and thus in the viewof FIG. 1, the observer would be looking out of a building, the floor 24and ceiling 26 having been drawn in cross-section. As will beappreciated by those skilled in the art, the safety fence assembly 20may be used in a number of circumstances according to the needs at thebuilding site.

The construction of the support post 22 is shown in more detail in FIGS.2 a through 2 e. An overall view of the support post 22 is provided inFIG. 3 a where it will be observed that the support post has a floorengaging end or foot 30 at one end and a similar ceiling engaging end 32at the opposite end with a pair of telescoping inner and outer tubes 34,36 in between. As will be seen from FIG. 3 b, the cross-section of theinner and outer tubes is square so that rotation of the outer tube 36will also turn the inner tube 34, as is explained further below. Thecoupling of the floor engaging end 30 and ceiling engaging end 32 to thesupport post 22 will be explained in more details with reference toFIGS. 2 a to 2 e.

As will be observed in the detail view of FIG. 2 e, the foot 34 has acruciform shape with four claws 38 each having a pair of sharppenetrating points for firm engagement with a supporting surface. Itwill be observed that the points are spaced apart and each has a lengththat is selected to limit penetration into a supporting surface. Thisconfiguration allows safety post 22 to come into firm engagement withthe associated floor 24 and to penetrate any surface frost or dust whichmight otherwise interfere with safe operation of the post. By limitingpenetration of the claw into an associated surface, damage to thesurface is avoided.

As will observed from FIG. 2 d, the ceiling engaging end 32 has asimilar cruciform configuration with four claws 40 of similar shape.However, it will be observed that the separation between opposing pairsof claws 40 in the ceiling engaging end 32 is smaller than theseparation between pairs of claws 38 in the floor engaging end 30. Thus,the floor engaging end 30 has a bigger “footprint” than the ceilingengaging end 32 for increased stability at the operatively lower end ofthe support post 22 where it needs to support any fence panels 28.Conveniently, the floor engaging end 30 and ceiling engaging end 32 canbe nested thereby saving space during shipping.

The floor engaging end 30 is rotatably coupled to a reduced diameterportion of a shaft 42 which extends upwardly in the operativeorientation of the support post 22. The shaft 42 is a solid steel barthat has a free end 44 that is threaded along its length and concealedfrom view inside the outer tube 36. The outer tube 36 has an internalnut 46 welded to its interior surface adjacent a lower end thereof andhaving complementary threads to the threaded end 44 of the shaft 42. Thelower extremity of the outer tube 36 has a guide bushing 48 for slidingengagement with the shaft 42 and which closes the lower end of the outertube 36 to prevent the ingress of dirt into the assembly. A plate 50 iswelded to the interior surface of the outer tube 36 above the height ofthe threaded end 44 of the shaft 42 to prevent any dirt from fallinginto the assembly from the top of the support post 22.

The ceiling engaging end 32 is rotatably coupled to a stem 52 which isslidingly received in the operatively upper end of the inner tube 34.The stem 52 carries a longitudinally extending pin 54 which has a headthat locates against a collar 56 welded to the interior surface of theinner tube 34. A top compression spring 58 is captured between thesupporting collar 56 and the stem 52. Thus, the application of pressureto the ceiling engaging end 32 will cause the stem 52 to penetrate intothe inner tube 34 and compress the compression spring 58 as illustratedby FIG. 2 b. The lower end of inner tube 34 supports a gravity lockassembly generally indicated by reference numeral 60 which is used tofix the relative position of the telescoping inner and outer tubes 34,36. A supporting collar 62 is welded to an interior surface of the innertube 34 a short distance from the operatively lower end of the innertube. The supporting collar supports a longitudinally extending pendulumstem 64 with associated flange 66 that, in use, extends downwardly tothe lower extremity of the inner tube 34. At the lower end, the pendulumstem 64 is fitted into an enlarged portion which pivotally supports apendulum lock 68. The pendulum lock 68 extends longitudinally a shortdistance below the pendulum stem 64 and has two oppositely disposed fins70 that extend outwardly and are adapted to engage into a selected oneof a series of longitudinally spaced apertures 72 formed in the outertube 36. The apertures 72 are disposed in pairs formed on opposite sidesof the outer tube 36. The number and spacing of the apertures 72 can bevaried according to the degree of adjustability required in fixing therelative position of the inner and outer tubes 34, 36. It will alsobecome apparent that the apertures 72 can be staggered and do not needto be provided in oppositely disposed pairs. The lower extremity of thependulum lock 68 has a longitudinally extending tongue 74 for addedweight and also to provide a bearing surface for accessing the pendulumlock 68 if it needs to be dislodged.

A center compressing spring 76 is captured at a lower end of the innertube 34 between a locating collar 78 adjacent to the pendulum lock 68and the supporting collar 62 which is fixed to the inner tube 34. A stop80 is fixed to the interior of the inner tube 34 to limit the upwardtravel of the pendulum stem 64 and flange 66.

The outer tube 36 also has a stop shown in FIG. 2 a in the form of awasher 82 welded into its interior surface. The stop limits the downwardtravel of the inner tube 34 relative to the outer tube 36. It will beunderstood that the central aperture of the washer 82 is provided toaccommodate the length of the tongue 74 from the gravity lock assembly60.

The operation and installation of the support post 22 will now bedescribed with reference being made to FIGS. 4 to 9. FIGS. 4 and 5 showthe inner and outer telescoping tubes 34, 36 extended from each other sothat the separation between the floor engaging end 30 and ceilingengaging end 32 approximate the height of the ceiling 26 from the floor24. Once the approximate separation of the inner and outer tubes 34, 36has been determined, the support post 22 is inclined as indicated byarrow 84 in FIG. 6. Inclining the support post 22 causes the pendulumlock 68 to pivot and for one of the fins 70 to come into engagement withthe internal surface of the outer tube 36. The separation between theinner and outer tubes 34, 36 is then adjusted so that the fin 70 of thependulum lock 68 is brought into engagement with the adjacent upperaperture indicated by reference numeral 72 a in FIG. 7. Selecting upperaperture 72 a fixes the relative position of inner and outer tubes 34,36 so that the combined length of the support post 22 would exceed theseparation between the ceiling 26 and the floor 24. Returning thesupport post 22 to bring the ceiling engaging end 32 into engagementwith the ceiling 26 as indicated by arrow 86 in FIG. 8, causes thesofter center compression spring 76 to compress against the locatingcollar 78 as a downward load is applied to the inner tube 34 asindicated by arrow 88 in FIG. 2 c. Thus the center compression spring 76operates to maintain the relative position between the inner and outertubes 34, 36 while in the upright position prior to securement of thepost.

To secure placement of the support post 22, the outer tube 36 togetherwith the inner tube 34 are rotated on the threaded shaft 42 as indicatedby arrow 90 in FIG. 8. The thread of the threaded end 44 and the nut 46are formed so that a counterclockwise rotation will bring about anupward vertical movement of the inner and outer tube assembly 34, 36. Aspressure is applied to the ceiling engaging end 32, the inner tube 34moves upwardly relative to the stem 52 thereby obscuring the stem fromview. Conveniently the stem 52 may have a bright color applied to itsuch as a red colored band to provide a visual indication of the loadbeing applied to the top compression spring 58 as observed in FIG. 2 b.The inner tube 34 completely obscures the stem 52 when the compressionspring 58 is fully loaded. It will be appreciated that the topcompression spring 58 provides a means to respond in dynamic fashion toany small dimensional changes due to expansion or contraction of thefloor and ceiling.

Once positioned, the support post 22 is extremely stable and secure sothat it can successfully withstand pull or push tension tests applied toits mid portion thereby complying with regulations of the applicablehealth and safety legislation or other legislation. Compliance with thesafety regulations is largely attributed to the greater stability andimproved surface contact provided by the configuration of the floorengaging end 30 and the ceiling engaging end 32. An added advantage ofthe post 22 made in accordance with the invention is that the componentparts are all hidden in the interior of the telescoping inner and outertubes 34, 36 and therefore are inaccessible to any accidental tamperingwhich would compromise the safety of the post. Conveniently, there areno auxiliary tools required for proper position of the post andtherefore the post is always ready for placement without having to seekand obtain the required tools. In addition, the square configuration ofthe inner and outer tubes, in combination with the counter clockwisethread, allows the tubes to be manually adjusted without requiring theassistance of a torque wrench, although this may used, if required.Because of the square cross-section, gripping of the hands or the needfor an auxiliary tool such as a torque wrench is minimized.

In use, the support post 22 is erected at selected locations and aplurality are positioned at suitable distances required to support fencepanels positioned in overlapping fashion as shown in FIGS. 1 and 13 inorder to form a security barrier. As shown in FIG. 1, the fence panel 28has a generally rectangular frame which includes a pair of spacedoppositely disposed upright members 92. These are coupled to a upperhorizontal member 94 and an operatively lower horizontal member 96.Conveniently, the lower horizontal member has a kick guard 98 attachedto it and extending the length of the fence panel 28. A plurality ofspaced horizontal and vertical wires 100 form a grid and are attached atopposite ends to the rectangular frame formed by the upright members 92and horizontal members 94, 96. A horizontal reinforcement member isfixed to the upper horizontal member 94. A fence lock 104 is shown inmore detail in FIGS. 10 to 12 and consists of a bolt 106 which is fixedto the upright 92 and has its threaded end extending through the upright92 in a plane which is parallel to that of the rectangular frame of thefence panel 28. The inner end of the bolt 106 is secured to the upright92 by welding. An L-shaped handle 108 is rotatably mounted to the bolt106 and has its free end extending parallel to the bolt so that it canbe rotated from the plane of the fence panel 28 outwardly as indicatedby arrow 110 to a parallel plane spaced from the fence panel 28. Thehandle 108 is captured between a washer 112 and a spring washer 114 towhich pressure is applied with a nut 116. In the shipping position ofthe fence lock 104, the handle 108 is brought to rest against a tab 118that stops the handle 108 from further rotation out of the plane offence panel. Once rotated into the position shown in FIG. 11, the fencepanel 28 is slid in the direction indicated by arrow 120 to move thefence panel towards the support post 22 and capture the post between thehandle 108 and the fence panel wires 100.

It will be noted that the handle 108 is sufficiently long to accommodatethe fence post 22 as well as the width of a second fence panel 28positioned between the post 22 and the fence panel as drawn to the rightof FIG. 13. It will be appreciated that the fence panel 28 is therebysecurely captured and will not easily become dislodged thereby improvingthe safety of the safety fence assembly which simplifies erection as awhole. In addition, the extent of the overlap between adjoining fencepanels may be adjusted making it more or less difficult to release of anindividual panel from the assembly for repositioning elsewhere ordismantling of the fence assembly.

The combination of the support post according to the invention and thefence panel with a rotatably mounted fence lock provides numerousadvantages over the prior art, in particular with respect to securityand safety of workers and their co-workers. It also makes the producteasier to use and more practical.

An alternative embodiment of the support post according to the inventionwill now be described with reference to FIG. 14.

The support post 130 in FIG. 14 has a floor engaging end 132 which issimilar to the floor engaging end 30 of support post 22 and thereforewill not be described in any more detail. However, it has a ceilingengaging end 134 that has an outer surface covering 136 made ofcompressible material such as rubber or synthetic equivalents that aremechanically equivalent to providing the compressive load applied in thesupport post 22 to the top compression spring 58. The support post 130has an inner tube 138 of circular cross-section which is telescopicallyreceived in an outer tube 140 which likewise has a circularcross-section. At the lower extremity of outer tube 140 a threadedcollar 142 is attached to its internal surface for threaded engagementwith a threaded post 144 having a bottom end which is rotatably coupledto the floor engaging end 132 and an upper free end which extends intothe interior of the outer tube 140. A stop flange 146 is fixed to theupper threaded end of the post 144 to limit the relative position of theouter tube 140 to the threaded post 144.

The outer tube 140 has a series of longitudinally spaced apertures 148formed in pairs on opposite sides of the outer tube. A lug 150 isrotatably coupled to an operatively lower end of the inner tube 138through a bushing 152 fixed to the inner tube 138. The lug 150 has a pinreceiving hole 154 which is adapted to align with a selected pair of theapertures 148 in the outer tube 140 in order to receive a locking pin(not shown) which traverses the outer tube 140 and the lug 150 to fixthe relative position of the telescoping inner and outer tubes 138, 140.

In use, the telescoping inner and outer tubes 138, 140 are separated toapproximate the height separating the ceiling from the associatedsupporting surface or floor and the locking pin is inserted as describedabove. Final adjustments of the height of the support post 130 isachieved by rotating the outer tube 140 on the threaded post 144 so asto extend the height of the support post. By virtue of the bushing 152,the ceiling engaging end 134 remains fixed against the upper engagementsurface while the surface covering 136 is compressed. As in the case ofthe support post 22, the post is adapted to adjust dynamically to anydimensional changes as may occur due to settling, weather conditions,drying of the cement, etc. The dynamic adjustability at the ceilingengaging end eliminates the need to constantly check and adjust postheight in order to ensure safety.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, several othervariations may be made to above-described embodiments of the inventionwithin the scope of the appended claims.

1. An extendable post installable between opposed surfaces, said posthaving: a first longitudinally extending tube, a second longitudinallyextending tube in sliding telescoping engagement with the first tube, alocking mechanism having an unlocked condition permitting relativesliding movement of the first tube relative to the second tube and alocked condition preventing relative sliding movement of the first tuberelative to the second tube when the first tube and the second tube arein a desired longitudinal relationship, one of the first and secondtubes having an end which in use is adjacent to one of said spacedsurfaces, said one tube having an internal guide bushing adjacent saidend and an internal nut spaced from the guide bushing and further fromsaid end than the guide bushing, and a shaft having a threaded portionadjacent one end and a smooth portion adjacent an opposite end, thethreaded portion being engaged with the internal nut and the smoothportion extending through the guide bushing in sliding engagementtherewith, said smooth portion projecting from said end of said onetube, said opposite end of the shaft carrying a surface engaging member.2. An extendable post according to claim 1 wherein the surface engagingmember is carried by the shaft in such as manner as to be capable ofangular movement relative thereto.